Burned (15 page)

Zahra ran the sole of one foot over the back of his calf in a lazy caress, that beautiful smile still in place. “I’ve got a lot of lost time to make up for, you know.”

He grinned at her. “Yeah?”

She nodded. “I can’t wait to see what else I’ve been missing out on.”

Hell, she was tying him in knots and didn’t even realize it. He smoothed her hair back from her damp forehead, loving how relaxed she was and how far she’d let herself go with him. “I’ll show you anything you want to learn, sweetness.”

“Mmm, good.” She wound her arms around him and pulled. Sean lowered his weight back onto her, reveling in the feel of her beneath him, her hands running slowly over his naked skin. She kissed his shoulder, the side of his neck, licked at the sensitive spot beneath his ear before gathering him close and hugging tight.

Lying in the cradle of her arms, breathing in her scent and feeling her body wrapped around him, Sean groaned in contentment. “Tired?” she asked, those gentle hands gliding over his back, pausing to squeeze and knead at the sore muscles at the back of his neck. He nearly purred.

“A little. You?” Normally an orgasm made him fall asleep but right now he felt wired, their lovemaking and bond igniting the protective part of him.

“Yeah. I feel like I could sleep for the rest of the day.”

“Then you should.” Pushing up onto his knees, he gently withdrew from her warmth, smiling at the pout on her face. He pulled the covers up over her and went to the bathroom to ditch the condom. When he came back she was curled onto her side and something about the position made his heart turn over. He was more aware than anyone how strong she was. Seeing her so relaxed and defenseless, knowing she felt safe in his care and trusted him…

God.

Pushing out a breath to ease the pressure in his chest, he lifted the sheets and slid in behind her. Zahra hummed in pleasure and snuggled back into his body, her soft, clean hair tickling his face. Breathing in her scent, one arm wrapped around her waist, Sean let her slide into sleep. Even when her breathing slowed and lengthened and her muscles went lax, he stayed awake to keep careful watch over the woman he was falling in love with.

Chapter Fourteen

The light was already fading when Amir arrived at the designated spot. Thick clouds obscured the dying sun, a damp breeze washing over the rain soaked streets. With his collar pulled up and his ball cap tugged low on his forehead to ward off the drizzle, he shut his car door and walked slowly toward the warehouse. Probably built in the fifties, it had been deserted long ago along with most of the area. Perfect for what they needed.

He walked up to the side door entrance, his wounded arm aching, the hand and fingers so swollen he could barely move them. A fever had taken hold, leaving him weak and chilled despite the medication he’d taken. As awful as he felt now, it was nothing to what he’d feel if he failed to kill the Titanium team members this time.

After checking to make sure no one was watching, he knocked on the metal door. The pistol in his waistband pressed against his lower back, calming his nerves somewhat. He was fast on the draw; if either of the men he was meeting had murder on their minds, he’d put a bullet straight through their hearts. Amir knew Malik was displeased with him. What he didn’t know was whether he’d ordered Amir’s death.

The door opened. A light skinned, brown eyed man stood there. He ran a cursory gaze over him. “Amir?”

“Yes. Abdullo?” The Tajik operative Hassani had used as a handler for the previous mission that had resulted in the failed bombing attempt at the Titanium safe house. Apparently Hassani had sent the man here to personally ensure there were no more problems.

The man nodded and stepped back, scanning the area behind Amir. “Come through to the back. We’ve already loaded everything up.”

Amir followed a few steps behind, senses on alert for any threats. In the back of the warehouse an unmarked white van sat in one of the empty bays, lit by an ancient overhead light. A white, twenty-something man with light brown hair stood by the rear doors of the vehicle and slammed them shut as Amir and Abdullo approached.

“This is Bob,” Abdullo told him.

“Bob” didn’t acknowledge him with anything more than a single glance before walking around to the driver’s door. “We going?” Amir was surprised by the total absence of any accent in Bob’s speech. Was he American born and raised? He’d expected a Chechen maybe, or someone from the Balkans, however, this man looked like he’d just stepped off the Baltimore docks to be part of this mission. Was he even a Muslim? Amir bristled at the thought of working with an unbeliever, even on this, but he wasn’t exactly in a position to protest.

Abdullo gestured impatiently to Amir. “You ride in the back seat.”

Pulse elevated, not really sure what to expect, Amir climbed into the back as the other two slid into the front seats. His heart rate slowed slightly when Bob opened the rolling bay door with a remote and drove out into the dull gray evening. They’d been on the road for nearly ten minutes before Amir felt relaxed enough to turn around and get his first look at the weapon strapped in the back.

It was much smaller than he’d expected, about the size of a beer keg. Four of the machines could easily have fit in the back. From the way it was strapped in place it appeared too heavy for a man to carry. Until the call from his handler, after he’d left the prison with a possible location for Zahra, he’d never even known something like this existed, let alone operated one before. Was it even stable? While he wasn’t privy to the reasons behind its use on this operation, he figured it had to be some sort of test. Was Hassani planning to use this same kind of device in future attacks or something?

“I’m told you’ve never worked with anyone else from the group before?” Abdullo asked in English, he assumed for Bob’s benefit.

Amir found a certain ironic amusement in Abdullo’s polite term for the cell. It made them sound so civilized, as though they weren’t part of a militant terrorist organization. “No.”

“Well, no matter. Once we deliver the device you’ll stay with it. When we’re out of range we’ll text you. You’ll activate it and then go hunting on foot. We’ll come back to pick up the device.”

“And leave me there?” he asked sardonically, already seeing how this was going to play out.

“If you can kill the targets and make it back to the drop off point in time to meet us, you’re welcome to ride back with us. If not, you’ll have to find your own way back.”

Amir didn’t plan on meeting up with them. He was certain they’d just kill him after he’d activated the device, and dump his body in the woods somewhere. No, he’d make his own way out of the forest and stay far away from Baltimore. If he wanted to live, that meant avoiding both American authorities and Hassani’s network. He had to go off the grid and stay off.

He was curious about Bob but didn’t bother asking how he fit into all this. Was he just an average American who’d been lured by the promise of a big pay day for this op? Or did he have some sort of military training? The weapon was top secret classified, and must have been either stolen from a military installation or purchased on the black market. Amir had no idea how Hassani had managed to obtain one, let alone a portable one, though his connections were legendary.

That’s why Amir had good reason to keep his guard up.

Though the meeting point had been set far outside of the city, the tension-filled two hour drive passed far too slowly for his liking. When Amir saw the sign welcoming them to Deep Creek Lake, his palms grew damp. The heavy rains all day had made the ground soft but fortunately this road was well traveled enough that no one would find the tire marks in the mud unusual.

Hiding the device was another matter.

Bob drove them around the lake to a secluded part of the forest just under a mile from the target house. They took an access road all the way to the end, and finding no buildings or signs of habitation, drove back partway. The van stopped on the leaf-carpeted shoulder and Bob switched off the lights and ignition.

“Everyone out,” Abdullo ordered.

Amir eased out of the van, careful to hide his grimaces of pain each time his wound was jarred. The rain had stopped but moisture dripped from the leaves with gentle patters. He walked around to the back and watched as the other men unloaded the weapon from the cargo area. Both men wore thick gloves. They grunted and strained to lift the thing between them. Once they unloaded it they hauled it into the woods, their passage made difficult by rocks and fallen trees.

Amir followed them farther and farther into the shadows until they eventually stopped and carefully set the device down on a thick carpet of decaying leaves. His good hand itched to curl around the grip of his pistol but he wasn’t worried about them killing him yet. Not before he could activate the secret weapon and carry out the hits he was responsible for.

Sweating and panting, Abdullo ran a sleeve across his forehead. “Come here.”

Amir approached, stopping a foot from the hunk of metal. It looked like something out of a science fiction movie and part of him didn’t believe it was capable of doing what he’d been told it did.

“This is the button to arm it. This one is to activate it. Once you receive our text, you must reply to us before you arm it, so we know when the attack is about to take place. It’s already been programmed with the correct code.”

Amir nodded. “How long until you’ll be out of range?”

“Twenty minutes or so.”

That long? This thing must have a wider range than he’d imagined. It would give him more lead time to escape though.

“Good luck.” Abdullo started back for the van, Bob right behind him.

Soon they were swallowed up by the forest. Amir waited, straining to hear anything other than the fading birdsong and the drip of water then finally he caught the muted sound of an engine starting. He pulled out his phone to mark the time, already anticipating a text in twenty minutes that would signal the start to the operation. As handy and as much a modern miracle as it was, his Smartphone would be useless soon. The moment he activated the weapon he and everyone else within range would be plunged back into the Stone Age.

****

Zahra stepped out of the bathroom dressed in a pair of jeans and a blue sweater Claire had loaned her. The jeans were baggy on her and too long in the leg, the sweater hanging on her frame, but she was just grateful to have something to wear. Not that being naked around Sean was a hardship. After the way he’d made love to her, she was looking forward to getting naked with him again the first chance she got.

Smiling at the thought, she emerged into the kitchen to find him working on a laptop at the small round table nestled into the nook by the front windows. Her hip was still tender and her neck and shoulders were stiff but she had the most delicious soreness between her legs that served as a constant reminder of how Sean had possessed her. That hadn’t been sex. She’d had enough of that to know the difference, and what she and Sean had shared had been so emotional and beautiful it made her tingle all over to remember it.

He glanced up when he heard her and the smile he flashed her nearly took her breath away. “How do you feel? Sleep okay?”

“Slept great.” Almost all day, as it turned out. It was already past dinner time. “And I feel amazing, considering we were in a pretty bad car wreck last night.” She walked up and bent to slide her arms around his chest from behind, pressing her cheek into the side of his neck. “But I’m pretty sure I feel amazing because of what you did to me.”

“Sweetness, you were amazing long before I did that, trust me.”

Zahra kissed the side of his neck and slid her hands over the contours of his chest, down to his flat, hard stomach. Sean made a quiet sound of enjoyment and tipped his head to the side so she could nibble and caress, his big hands covering hers as he urged her to explore all those sexy muscles hidden beneath his T-shirt.

Lord, he smelled good, like soap and musk. She could eat him up. Continuing to pet him, she peered over his shoulder at the laptop. “Working on anything interesting?”

“I don’t remember,” he answered, eyes closed as her hands roamed over him. “Can’t remember anything with you touching me.”

She laughed softly but it was a secret thrill to know she affected him as much as he did her. This new sense of feminine power was heady and she could see herself getting addicted to making him purr and arch into her touch. As her hands slid low on his abdomen she felt the muscles clench and an answering throb began between her legs. She let her palms stroke over his denim clad thighs, savoring the power in the bunching muscles beneath her skin. The hard ridge of his erection was outlined against the fly of his jeans and she imagined walking around to kneel between his spread thighs, unzipping him and pulling him out. She’d wrap her fingers around him and stroke him the way he’d taught her, then bend her head and take that gorgeous plump head into her mouth. He’d tangle his hands in her hair and let his head fall back, praise her with whispered words and guttural male groans of pleasure as she sucked him like a lollipop.

Gentle hands closed around her wrists, stopping her exploration. “And I’m gonna forget my own damn name if you don’t stop that.”

Blushing but intrigued, she allowed him to pull her hands away and tug her to stand next to him. His dark eyes glowed with banked desire as he looked up at her. “Behave and stop distracting me while I get some work done, and I’ll reward you for your patience later.”

The sensual heat in the words sent a shiver through her. She couldn’t wait to see what he had in mind for “later”.

When he kissed the inside of both wrists and released them, she drew a shaky breath and ran a hand through her damp hair. “You hungry?”

The look he slanted her almost melted her knees.

“For food,” she clarified with a laugh. “I thought I’d make some pancakes with fruit or something.”

He raised one black eyebrow. “I thought you had a thing against serving guys food?”

She flushed, remembering her snappish comment to him last week. It seemed so bitchy now. “I do. But for you I might make an exception from time to time.”